Art, Apple Sauce, Australians, Argentinians, An Amorous American and other A's in Paris

I arrived home after 4 nights in Paris yesterday. What an amazing, eye-opening trip. 

The trip encompassed several firsts; the first time I had travelled abroad alone, the first time I'd ever stayed in a hostel, the first time I'd kissed someone who wasn't English(!)

Although I went to Paris to be alone, take photographs, practise my French and eat rich French food, it's pretty impossible to be alone when you've opted to stay in a room with 11 other people. That's something I never would've considered an option before but it turned out to be the best decision since I met so many amazing people. 

Talking to the Australian girls that I met, Evelina and Dani, I heard all about their travels around Europe, where they had been and where they were heading to next, the friends they had made. It really whet my appetite for more travelling, all I can think about now I'm home is planning another trip somewhere and a longer, proper one this time.

Dani and I were talking about confidence, as we discovered we were both actresses. She said that travel definitely changes you, she felt like she had changed over the past few weeks that she had been away. And that is what I want. Change. I feel like my life is stuck in a rut which I hadn't even noticed until I broke up with my boyfriend. Now I want to get out, quit my job, leave my home (sorry mum), say goodbye to my friends who go to the same pub in Croydon every week. I'm ready for new, exciting experiences. I'm ready for the next chapter in my life.

Being in Paris taught me that there is so much out there to see, so many interesting people to meet from all over the world, adventures and unexpected romances to be had around every corner. I thought I would be spending my first night in Paris resting after my trip on the Eurostar, perhaps unpacking and getting an early night. Instead I was swept off my feet by a handsome boy from New Hampshire, taken to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle and to smoke mint flavoured shisha in Pigalle, ending the night dancing in a club next to the Moulin Rouge. We both agreed it was attraction at first sight ("I could see it on your face. Did you see it on mine?") and though it's ships passing in the night he has said he'll come to London. He's studying in Pau, in the south of France until Christmas.

Whatever comes next, we'll always have Paris.